This lesson was delivered to the children at our summer camp. Srila Janardan Maharaj read from Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita about Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s charming, humorous, and amazing travels through the jungle. At one point Lord Chaitanya kicked a sleeping tiger and whereas the Lord’s associate became frightened, the tiger actually got up and began chanting the Holy Name and dancing in ecstasy. This is a wonderful class and is not just for kids. Listen to lecture…

His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Pavan Janardan Maharaj reads from the holy scripture Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita by Srila Krishna Das Kaviraj Goswami every day when he is at the Santa Cruz Seva Ashram. The recordings below include commentaries and stories throughout the readings. Listen to lecture…

Raghunath Das went to Panihati, and following the order of Nityananda Prabhu, he observed a festival (chida-dadhi-mahotsava) by distributing chipped rice mixed with yogurt. The day after the festival, Nityananda Prabhu gave Raghunath Das the blessing that he would very soon attain the shelter of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Listen to lecture…

The first chapter begins with fourteen Sanskrit verses giving ontology so that we can understand the pastimes and what is going to be presented in the Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita. The first six verses describe Mahaprabhu, then the next five describe Nityananda Prabhu. The next two verses describe the truth of Adwaita Prabhu and the following verse describes the Pancha-tattva. Listen to lecture…

While discussing the Absolute Truth, the Lord analyzed Brahman,Paramatma and Bhagavan, as well as the expansions of the Lord called svayam-rupa,tad-ekatma and avesha, which are divided into various branches known as vaibhava and prabhava.Listen to lecture…

“These are Mahaprabhu’s teachings to Rupa Goswami and these teachings are about how one can engage oneself properly in devotional service, because what He’s really explaining to Rupa Goswami very nicely, is abhideya, the process of devotional service.” Listen to lecture…

“Sometimes all the transcendental ecstatic symptoms were manifest in Him. One night, Govinda and Swarup Damodar noticed that although the three doors to the Lord’s room were closed and locked, the Lord was not present inside. Seeing this, Swarup Damodar and the other devotees went outside and saw the Lord lying unconscious by the gate known as Simha-dwara.” Listen to lecture…

As the branches and subbranches of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu were described in the tenth chapter, in this eleventh chapter the branches and subbranches of Sri Nityananda Prabhu are similarly listed. Listen to lecture…

In 1407 Saka era (A.D. 1486), in the full-moon evening of the month of Phalguna, with the constellation of Simha (Leo) on the horizon, Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu appeared as the son of Sri Sachidevi and Jagannatha Misra. Listen to lecture…

His Grace Srila Bhakti Pavan Janardan Maharaj is the Sevaite-Acharya of our Santa Cruz Seva Ashram. An expert preacher, he embodies the principles of bhakti-yoga and self-surrender. The audio recordings on this site include lectures from Sunday feasts, festival days, preaching programs, and daily classes on the holy scripture Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita.Read more…

Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu enjoyed His childhood pastimes – crawling, crying, eating dirt and giving intelligence to His mother, favoring a brahmana guest, riding on the shoulders of two thieves and misleading them to His own house, and, on the plea of being diseased, taking prasadam in the house of Hiranya and Jagadisa on the Ekadasi day. Listen to lecture…

This chapter fully describes Lord Chaitanya’s kaisora-lila, or the activities He performed just before attaining youth. During this time He studied deeply and was victorious over greatly learned scholars. During His kaisora-lila the Lord also sported in the water… Listen to lecture…

“If you just take this principle of trnad api sunichena and utilize this principle, then everyone’s life will be enriched by that. Srila Govinda Maharaj preached that verse everywhere and showed by his example how to follow it.” Listen to lecture…

Pradyumna Mishra, a resident of Srihatta, came to see Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu to hear from Him about Lord Krishna and His pastimes. The Lord, however, sent him to Srila Ramananda Raya. Srila Ramananda Raya was training the deva-dasi dancing girls in the temple, and when Pradyumna Mishra heard about this, he returned to Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. The Lord, however, elaborately described the character of Srila Ramananda Raya. Then Pradyumna Mishra went to see Ramananda Raya again to hear about the transcendental truth from him. Listen to lectures…

One day Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu said to Sanatan Goswami, “Your decision to commit suicide is the result of the mode of ignorance. One cannot get love of God simply by committing suicide. You have already dedicated your life and body to My service; therefore your body does not belong to you, nor do you have any right to commit suicide. I have to execute many devotional services through your body. Listen to lectures…

Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu once inquired from Haridas Thakur, who was known as Brahma Haridas, how the yavanas, or persons bereft of Vedic culture, would be delivered in Kali-yuga. Haridas Thakur replied that their deliverance would be possible if they very loudly chanted the Hare Krishna mantra, for hearing the Hare Krishna mantra chanted loudly, even with but little realization, would help them. Listen to lecture…

Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu delivered almost all the fallen souls by directly meeting them. He delivered others by entering the bodies of great devotees, such as Nakula Brahmachari. And He delivered still others by appearing before them, as in the case of Nrsimhananda Brahmachari. Listen to lecture…

“Srila Govinda Maharaj has called this [meeting between Srila Rupa Goswami and Sriman Mahaprabhu in Jagannath Puri] ‘the examination hall of Srila Rupa Goswami’…Mahaprabhu wanted to show the highest ability [of Rupa Goswami] and that examination hall was to ask all the devotees to bless Srila Rupa Gowami as the leader of the sampradaya.” Listen to lecture…

On an autumn evening when the moon was full, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu walked along the seashore near the Aitota temple. Mistaking the sea for the Yamuna River, He jumped into it, hoping to see the water pastimes Krishna enjoyed with Srimati Radharani and the other gopis. As He floated in the sea, however, He was washed away to the Konarka temple, where a fisherman, thinking that the Lord’s body was a big fish, caught Him in his net and brought Him ashore. Listen to lecture…